Elastic fabric and colored strand therefor



May 26, 1936. p JECUSCO 2,041,837

ELASTIC FABRIC AND COLORED STRAND THEREFOR Filed Dec. 5, 1954 Eiflllllllllllll.

Patented, May 26, 1936 UNITED STATESv PATENT OFFICE ELASTIC FABRIC AND COLORED STRAND THEREFOR Application December 3, 1934, Serial No. 755,662

9 Claims.

This invention relates to elastic strands and particularly to colored elastic strands for incorporation into woven, knitted or netted elastic fabrics, etc., as well as to such fabrics themselves.

The present application constitutes a continuation in part of my co-pending application, Serial No. 709,408, filed February 2, 1934.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a superior elastic strand highly pleasing to the aesthetic sense.

A further object is to provide a unitary elastic strand capable of producing novel and attractive multitone effects when incorporated into elastic fabrics.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an attractive and colorful elastic fabric.

A still further object is to provide a novel elastic fabric having changeable color effects as the tension on the fabric is changed.

Other objects and advantages will appear to those skilled in the art from the following, considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawing and appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing:

25 Fig. 1 is a broken perspective view of an elastic strand embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a schematic representation of an elastic fabric having incorporated therein multitone elastic strands, the fabric being represented as in 30 its contracted condition; and

Fig. 3 is a corresponding view indicating the elastic fabric as having been materially stretched to thus produce a changed multitone effect.

The particular elastic strand in herein chosen for illustration is composed of a plurality of irregularly-shaped bodies of differentially-colored elastic material such, for instance, as rubber, latex or other suitable elastic material. The said plurality of bodies may vary in size and shape and 40 may, for instance, comprise red bodies il, blue bodies I2, yellow bodies I3, black bodies l4 and white bodies l5, as indicated in the drawing. These differentially-colored bodies may be organized into a unitary strand in any approved manner. In'addition to being of irregular shape, the differentially-colored bodies ll, l2, l3, l4 and iii are irregularly disposed in the strand Ill along all three dimensions thereof.

In producing the elastic strand above described, a plurality of masses of plastic rubber, respectively having the desired individual coloration, may be kneaded together and rolled into a sheet which may be later vulcanized and subsequently cut into strands such as H). Other methods of manufacture will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art, such, for instance, as an extrusion process.

The terms color and coloration as used herein are to be understood, for the purpose of convenience of description, as including black and 5 white as well as combinations of the same and other tints or colors.

As above pointed out, the various masses of differentially-colored rubber are molded or otherwise suitably organized together so that, while they are visually distinct one from the other, owing to their distinctive coloration, they nevertheless form a physically-unitary strand. It will be noted that the various bodies of the strand Ill preferably each have length, width and depth, rather than mere surface coloration, so as to be properly characterized as of three dimensional extent.

In Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawing are schematically shown a fabric comprising interwoven warp strands l6 and weft strands II formed of cotton, rayon, silk, or other so-called textile materia and also having interwoven therewith a plurality of elastic strands Ill like that shown in Fig. 1. If desired, ordinary rubber strands or multicolored strands like l0 may be included in the weft.

In Figs. 2 and 3 just referred to, no effort has been made to indicate more than a surface ply of the fabric, inasmuch as the number of plys and the character of the weave may vary widely within the scope of the present invention, and the inclusion in the background of additional plys, together with their binding strands, etc., would cause confusion and, therefore, serve no useful purpose. While the multitone elastic strands Ill are shown as lying straight in the fabric, it will be appreciated that in the weaving of fabrics, some or all of these strands will almost inevitably become twisted, but this fact, rather than being harmful, would add to the attractiveness of the multitone effect herein referred to.

Inasmuch as the various differentially-colored bodies It to l5 inclusive in effect transversely divide or partly divide a given face of the strands I0 into varied color zones or spots, when the tension on the fabric is changed, as, for instance, when the fabric is stretched from the condition shown in Fig. 2 to that shown in Fig. 3, these various multicolor spots change in dimensions and are elongated. For instance, given bodies or spots such as l5, while having their greatest dimensions extending in directions other than longitudinally of the fabric when the elastic strands are relaxed as in Fig. 2, alter materially in shape, as will be seen by comparing the said bodies II in Fig. 2 with the same bodies as they appear in Fig. 3 when the strands are under greater tension. It will be appreciated, of course, that as the elastic strands iii are stretched longitudinally, they will, at the same time, contract their transverse dimensions.

The novel elastic strands lfl, when woven or otherwise incorporated into a fabric, produce an extremely attractive variegated effect therein, owing largely to the three-dimensional disposition of their visually-distinct but physically-unitary difierentially-colored bodies ll, l2, I3, I and I5. As a matter of fact, when the tension on the fabric changes, the various colored bodies seem to scintillate through the relatively-inelastic warp and weft strands I6 and H as the fabric is stretched and released, the effect being quite remarkable, inasmuch as the color-patterns show differently through the interstices of the fabric for substantially each different tension under which the fabric may be placed. An added effect is also obtained if the threads extending crosswise of the multicolored elastic strands are of semi-transparent material such as rayon or silk.

The elastic strands l0 above described are of conventional rectangular cross-sectional form, but it will be obvious without further illustration that they may be of other than the crosssectional form shown, such, for instance, as the common round form. Furthermore, the number and coloration of the various differentiallycolored portions may be varied as desired.

The invention may be carried out in other specific ways than that herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the invention, and the present embodiment is therefore to be considered in all re spects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.

I claim:

1. An elastic fabric having included therein one or more elastic strands each having variegated surface-areas or zones of differential coloration, size and shape dispersed thereon substantially throughout its length and changeable in shape in response to changes in the tension to which the fabric is subjected.

2. An elastic fabric having included therein one or more elastic strands each having variegated surface-areas or zones of differential coloration, size and shape irregularly disposed thereon and changeable in shape in response to changes in the tension to which the fabric is subjected.

3. An elastic fabric having included therein one or more elastic strands each having irregularlydisposed and irregularly-shaped differentiallycolored areas or zones dispersed thereon and changeable in shape in response to changes in the tension to which the fabric is subjected.

4. An elastic fabric having included therein a plurality of elastic strands, each of which is com- 10 posed of a plurality of three-dimensional bodies of elastic material of differential coloration and shape, the said differentially-colored bodies being changeable in shape in response to changes in the tension to which the fabric is subjected.

5. An elastic fabric including one or more elastic strands and a plurality of cross-strands extending crosswise of the said elastic strands, the said elastic strands each having variegated surface-areas or zones of differential coloration, 20 size and shape dispersed thereon and showing through the interstices between the said crossstrands in changing patterns as the tension applied to the fabric is changed.

6. A unitary elastic strand of a cross-sectional size suitable for incorporation in fabrics and having variegated surface-areas or zones of differential coloration changeable in shape in response to changes in the tension to which the strand is subjected.

7. A unitary elastic strand of a cross-sectional size suitable for incorporation in fabrics and having variegated surface-areas or zones of differential coloration irregularly disposed thereon and dispersed substantially throughout the length of 35 the strand and changeable in shape in response to changes in the tension to which the strand is subjected.

8. A unitary elastic strand of a cross-sectional size suitable for incorporation in fabrics and hav- 40 ing irregularly-disposed and irregularly-shaped differentially-colored areas or zones dispersed thereon and changeable in shape in response to changes in the tension to which the strand is sub jected.

9. A unitary elastic strand of a cross-sectional size suitable for incorporation in fabrics and composed of a plurality of three-dimensional bodies of elastic material of differential coloration and shape, the said differentially-colored bodies being 50 arranged in the strand in such manner as to change their shape in response to changes in the tension to which the strand is subjected. V

FREDERICK P. JECUSCO. 

